


Stranded

by yellowrooster



Category: Batman - All Media Types, DCU, DCU (Comics), Red Robin (Comics), Superboy (Comics)
Genre: Blanket Permission, Blanket Permission Statement On Profile, M/M, No Lifeguard On Duty - Read at Your Own Risk, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Tags May Change, Tim Drake is Catlad | Stray, WIP
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-08
Updated: 2020-05-08
Packaged: 2021-03-02 18:02:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,972
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24071062
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yellowrooster/pseuds/yellowrooster
Summary: Stray and Superboy have an encounter.-Summary & fic subject to change.WIP
Relationships: Tim Drake/Kon-El | Conner Kent
Comments: 10
Kudos: 136
Collections: Fic Journal of the Plague Year





	Stranded

Kon was over at Clark’s for the weekend.

  
Why?

  
Something about family bonding and mandated visits and how “teenagers shouldn’t live on their own in Hawaii.” (They had even made some sort of big deal about how it wasn’t even part of the contiguous United States---as if that were particularly relevant for a Super.)

  
So, Kon spent every other weekend in Metropolis (otherwise, he was in San Francisco) and weekdays in Smallville---which was probably the most boring place he’d ever visited, even if organic farming was more interesting than he’d anticipated. And, actually, despite the first few awkward weekends spent staring at Clark and Lois across a microwave dinner, they’d actually got some sort of thing worked out. A routine.

  
Kon would arrive Friday night for dinner if he didn’t have other plans, bringing one of Ma’s steaming hot pies with him (necessary because it always put Clark in a better mood), catch up with Lois and Clark (the typical “How’s school going?” and “Keeping up your grades?” or “I heard there was an incident with the neighbor’s cows?”), and if there wasn’t a lecture, Kon would get to spend the rest of the weekend patrolling in Metropolis. Not that Metropolis needed 24/7 supervision, exactly (it isn’t Gotham, for God’s sake!), but if Kon showed up at a five car pile up across town from where Clark was lecturing some supervillain that maybe they should use their powers for truth and justice---well, it was a pretty decent way to avoid each other.

  
Sometimes they’d also go to a ball game or something, so he’d have something to tell Ma when she asked.

  
Then when he flew back to Smallville, Clark would call Ma to make sure he got there (Kon learned the hard way that if he didn’t go straight to Smallville he’d get grounded) and they’d chat and Clark would make it seem like they’d had a great time and really had time to ‘chat’ and Kon couldn’t contradict him without letting him know he was using his super hearing to listen in on private conversations again (Clark really had a huge hang up about that) and he’d get a lecture again.

  
Whatever.

  
It suited Kon just fine. At least Clark wasn’t lecturing him when they spent time apart.

  
So, while Kon was staying at Clark’s in Metropolis, he wasn’t really staying with Clark, and that was fine, because Clark never approved of anything Kon did anyway, and certainly didn’t approve of the way Kon flew over buildings listening to people’s private conversations---a form of entertainment Kon preferred to cable TV with Lois agonizing over an article in the background.

  
Kon even had a few favorites---what was a night in Metropolis without flying over Nina and Belinda’s top floor apartment---a few streets away from the financial district---where he could hear about how “fucking annoying your step mother is! I can’t believe she unfriended me on Facebook---”

  
“I can’t believe you’d say that! Why were you Facebook friends with her anyway---you know she ran my dad over with a car!”

  
“He survived!”

  
“It’s the principle of the matter, Belinda! How would you like it if you knew I was connected with your ex-girlfriend on LinkedIn?”

  
“You’re connected with my ex on LinkedIn? Wait, which ex? The one who dumped me for the mayor? She may actually be good for your career---”

  
“The one who broke up with you because she wanted to go to Mars.”

  
“You’re connected with Kendra on LinkedIn?”

  
Yeah, Kon loved listening to them. They always had something going on. Listening to the weird subplots their lives seemed to have convinced him his life might not be less weird even if he was a civilian.  
Kon slowed his velocity in the air, interested. He remembered Nina agonizing over Kendra before she and Belinda had gotten together (they were roommates), and nothing interested him more than to hear a continuation of that dramatic saga.

  
Clark would never approve.

  
But it was not to be.

  
Kon’s attention was quickly grabbed by the nearby museum---something that alarmed him. Not an alarm---more like the long purring sound of a security system being disabled.

  
“Bye, Nina,” Kon said, regretfully flying off in the direction of the museum to check it out. “Bye, Belinda.”

  
It didn’t take long to find the man in the museum. It wasn’t difficult to find the heartbeat---slow and steady, unhurried. Thrum-thrum-thrum.

There were a few other heartbeats, but he was pretty sure it was this one.

  
Actually, the difficult part had been setting off the museum’s external alarms while he was climbing in.

  
It was dark---not a problem for Kon---and the criminal was circling some shiny on a glass display box in the middle of the room. Thief, then.

  
“You know you could come here during the day,” Kon said. “Get tickets and everything.”

  
Thrum-thrum-thrum. The man’s heart did not skip a beat.

  
The man still stood with his back to Kon, still looking at the shiny glass case. “I’m not going to pay for their ridiculous $45 pass to get in the special exhibit. That’s absurd.”

  
“Sundays are half off,” Kon pointed out.

  
“Wonderful,” said the criminal. “Do you want to come with me here Sunday morning? My treat.” He laughed, slowly turning around.

  
Kon got a look at him as he turned around. Small, muscular, wearing an abnormal amount of shiny leather. “Stray,” he said, noting the whip at his hip---more dangerous than it looked and something Kon often forgot about, if last time was any indication.

  
“Superboy!” Stray said, sounding genuinely happy to see him. “Long time no see.”

  
“Not that long,” Kon said. “You were here like two weekends ago.”

  
“Hmm, you’re right,” Stray said. “Metropolis armory, I remember.”

  
“What did you take from there, by the way? They never reported anything stolen.”

  
“I’m hurt,” Stray said. They were now only a few feet apart. Stray was beaming at him and taking slow steps. It was somewhat distracting. “You don’t think I can go anywhere without trying to steal anything? Maybe I just wanted to try on their suits of armor. I went there as a kid once, you know.”

  
“Yeah?”

  
“For someone’s birthday party. We had ice cream cake. Maybe I wanted to relive that experience. Maybe you’ve misjudged me.”

  
“Okay,” said Kon, slowly. “Was that why you were there, then?”

  
“Well, no,” said Stray, making a face. “I hated that kid. If they haven’t noticed that it’s gone yet, they don’t appreciate it.”

  
“Yeah, yeah,” Kon said. “You’ve been coming to Metropolis a lot lately. Thinking of changing your base of operations?”

  
Stray laughed, now indubitably in Kon’s personal space. He was never one of those afraid to get too close to a Super, which Kon appreciated, even if he knew it was just part of how the Cats worked. Kon could hear police sirens in the background and wondered if they were on their way to check out the alarm he had tripped.

  
“No,” said Stray. “Gotham’s home. It’s not my fault that Metropolis has its own assortment of… goodies.” Stray finished his statement by running his hand over Kon’s bicep to indicate he did not mean just shiny jewelry. “Plus,” he added. “I have to come here every other weekend so you don’t forget about me when you’re in town.”

  
“Every other weekend?” Kon asked, aware that the sirens were getting louder, possibly loud enough that Stray should hear them soon.

  
“Come on,” Stray laughed, leaning into Kon. “It’s common knowledge that you flip flop between here in Metropolis then in San Francisco with the Titans. Some people call them the divorced cities with a complicated child custody arrangement.”

  
“I’ve never heard anyone say that,” Kon argued, noticing the sirens were nearly outside now.

  
“Oh, sure,” Stray said. “Not to your face.”

  
“Pretty sure they don’t say that anywhere.”

  
“Uh-huh,” Stray said, patronizingly. “Did you think about it, though? How about it? A date here tomorrow?”

  
“Oh, but you’re busy tomorrow, kitty,” Kon said, even though he kind of wanted to say yes, because it was better than sitting at the kids’ table at whatever correspondents’ dinner Clark had scheduled.

  
“What will I be doing?” Stray said, teasingly, in a way that implied that the answer was… well, something Kon would rather be doing with Stray.

  
“Jail time.”

  
The flashing police lights splintered through the window at that exact moment. It couldn’t have been better timed, Kon thought, congratulating himself.

  
Stray gaped at him. “You know, Superboy, I wasn’t expecting that, I must admit.” Stray leaned forward to pat Kon on the cheek. “That was some really smooth talking. Very cute.” Kon noticed the feel of the claws on the side of his neck. “Well, it is 10:59, and I’ve got plans tomorrow, even if you unfortunately won’t be part of them. So why don’t we make the most of today?”

  
Kon heard footsteps on the stairs---police coming up to inspect the museum---even as he was suddenly pulled into a closet. Kon found his back pressed to the door, Stray’s hands on his shoulders and leg warm between his. Guards stormed into the room they had just been in.

  
“Wha---” Kon started, only for Stray to lean forward and capture his lips with his own.

  
Kon could have stopped him, obviously. He was Superboy. Only, Kon didn’t want to. Stray’s lips were warm and soft, and his firm hands on Kon’s shoulders stabilized them against the door. It took a second for Kon to close his eyes.

  
Stray brought one hand to cup the side of Kon’s face and guide his head into a tilt. Something warm pooled in the pit of his belly. Stray pulled in closer, knee now pressing against where Kon was hard.

  
Kon choked.

  
“What’s the matter?” Stray murmured, pulling away, breath soft against Kon’s face. “Cat got your tongue?”

  
Kon’s brain stalled. He couldn’t say anything.

  
“Oh, come on,” Stray whispered. “I had to shut you up somehow. You’ll give us away.”

  
Us, Kon thought deliriously, managing to move his hands to curl around Stray’s waist. He thought about how fun it would be to pull a Bonnie and Clyde with Stray, stealing stuff and bantering and kissing all the time.

  
The only real downside would be Clark and his lecturing.

  
“You better do it again,” he said. “Otherwise I might forget to be quiet.”

  
“We can’t have that,” Stray agreed, leaning in.

  
***

The guards never even checked the storage closet, which Kon had to wonder about later. (He was pretty sure such minimal detective work was why villains got away with things so often.) After a while, the guards left, attributing the tripped alarm to mechanical failure, and they were the only ones in the museum again, pressed up together in the storage closet the way they had been for hours.

  
Eventually, they both climb back onto the roof.  
Clark might be wondering why Kon wasn’t home by now.

  
Stray stretched on the rooftop, readying his whip by swinging it around. “Nice playing with you, Superboy,” he said, laughing as he stepped away. “I love winning.”

  
"But I stopped you from taking anything," Kon said. "So I won this time."

  
Stray grinned. "Wanna know a secret, Superboy?"

  
"What, kitty cat?" asked Kon, feeling pleased with himself.

  
"You should have taken me up on my offer, " said Stray, flicking the whip. “If you’d searched me, you would know that I’m not leaving here empty-handed.”

  
Just like that Stray was gone, just like that. Kon could have followed, but, as he watched Stray on his way, instead found himself admiring the view.

  
Once Stray was far enough away he could be sure he couldn’t hear. “Fine,” Kon admitted. “You win.”

**Author's Note:**

> All comments are welcome.  
> This fic may change drastically in tags and content as I update. I am okay if you want to reserve kudos until after you see more of the fic.  
> This fic was written in quarantine for covid-19 and is the only thing I can currently focus on.


End file.
